While no one knows how a person will vote there have been many polls where significant minorities of republicans state they will never vote for Trump in the general. There is a growing number of main stream republican leaders disavowing Trump.

"Chris Christie's endorsement of Donald Trump is an astonishing display of political opportunism. Donald Trump is unfit to be President. He is a dishonest demagogue who plays to our worst fears. Trump would take America on a dangerous journey. Christie knows all that and indicated as much many times publicly. The Governor is mistaken if he believes he can now count on my support, and I call on Christie's donors and supporters to reject the Governor and Donald Trump outright. I believe they will. For some of us, principle and country still matter." - Meg Whitman

There are more quotes and articles by prominent republicans out there. And every day I see more joining the anti-Trump side. Party leaders disavowal of Trump will not change the minds of Trump voters nor will it sway every republican who voted for Bush, Rubio, etc. in the primary. But it will solidify the resolve of republicans uncomfortable with Trump and sway the minds of some who are on the fence.

For all these reasons it seems likely to me that the republicans will not unify behind Trump and that a significant minority will sit out in the general or even vote for Hillary.

Comments

One hopes they vote for him the next 2-3 weeks and then back away. Then again, it's hard to see they're going to rally behind Cruz or Rubio either. I'm still kind of expecting Romney to pop back up, but after the GOP threw a dozen plus candidates at this primary, that'd just highlight how bankrupt they are. Looking good.

Yes, it's likely that a significant minority of Trump voters will not vote for a non Trump alternative if he doesn't get the nomination.

This is not an argument for complacency. These anti Trump endorsements and articles in the primary won't mean much if those republican leaders don't continue to speak out against him in the general. We still don't know how this will play out and I'll be worried until the votes are counted.

The Republicans demonized, blacks, Latinos, and Gays to appeal to angry white voters. They cannot pretend to be surprised by Trump's supporters. The GOP welcomed the angry white voter. David Duke sees kinship with Trump. The GOP played the same game with Barry Goldwater. The core nature of the GOP is to appeal to racist whites supremacists. The GOP makes friends with xenophobes.

Republicans have pretended to be Christian, yet like Trump, they do not hear the words of kindness and equality in the Bible. The so-called Evangelicals are voting for a pretender who cannot properly name the books of the Bible. They are religious frauds. Republicans will tell you how much they love the unborn child, yet will cover up the poisoning of an entire town. They laugh at the plight of the poor. They hate immigrants including those trying to escape death. They wanted to send hungry children back to die. Republicans are not religious. They are bigots and racists without honor. They look like us, but they are evil.They laughed when Obama was attacked by the racists.

Donald Trump is the modern Republican Party. The majority of Republicans will support Trump. Do not delude yourself that the Republicans will not accept a bigoted religious fraud as their leader. Watch the vote tomorrow, and see how many states Trump wins.

You had better recognize the nature of the enemy.

Edit to add:

Go down the GOP line,

Who has a message that would give hope to a non-white non male voter that they would be safe under a GOP President and Congress

To be sure rmrd. I'm not saying that a majority of republicans will reject Trump. Clearly that is not so. But Trump has crossed so many lines and gone so far beyond the wink wink nudge nudge common in the republican party that there is open revolt against him by the more moderate elements. If that continues it seems likely that a significant minority of republicans won't vote for him.

About 20 percent of likely Democratic voters say they would buck the party and vote for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in a general election, according to a new poll...A smaller number of Republicans say they’d vote for Clinton — about 14 percent.

That is the anti Hillary vote. That 20% seems to be holding in polling. We know there are lots of Republicans that have a deep dislike for Clinton but there is also Democratic voters that feel that way towards Clinton. This isn't Sanders supporters having hissy fits but voters that have come to dislike her through her career for various reasons. This could have a drag on turn out if she is nominated.

While racism, misogyny, fear, and the desire for an authoritarian strong man are central themes in the republican party they don't have an exclusive copyright on those values.Strap in tight, it's going to be a rough ride.

By the way, if Trump is the nominee, my guess is that the Republicans do unite behind him. Trump will make a few nice statements to give cover to those he vanquished and there are more authority lovers in the party than there are John McCain & Co. members, Bush family members and Todd Whitmans to worry about. Those who resist will be reminded that with Scalia dead, it will only take the Democrats one more term to take the court away for a generation. Big picture, Trump can lose Kagan.

Heck, Republicans defecting to Hillary Rodham Clinton might well hurt our cause as their support will open her up to further attacks from the left.

I hope not. I'd like to think there are still some republicans with honor and integrity. I'd like to believe that when Meg Whitman said, "For some of us, principle and country still matter" that she actually meant it. I guess we'll see.

The people who I'd expect to show "honor and integrity" now all had something to do with building the Tea Party in the first place. I trhink they sold out a long time ago. And... great. Let them have Trump and back Trump. Hillary will slice and dice him.

What is happening this election especially among Right Wing pundits, power brokers and funders is probably unprecedented. Trump has already stripped them of their power and influence and if he is elected they will pay for their panicked and elitist rejection of the Peoples choice.

Working people of all political descriptions are fed up with politics and the parasites that feed in that cesspool. What the pundits and their ilk do, support HRC or continue to try to undermine Trump will probably have little effect on who votes for Trump because many people have rejected being lead by these parasites and actually have a choice this time.

The fact that people may be able to destroy the power and influence of both party elites and their minions in a single election is truly amazing but both party elites are doing their best to guarantee their own downfall.

If Trump has, indeed, neutralized his party elites (and they were particularly weak headed into this, had it not been Trump it might have been Cruz), then those people have only one hope for relevance:

The media did not undermine Trump, they promoted him. Trump was best buddies with the anchors on "Fox & Friends" and "Morning Joe". Trump did not have to lay out large amounts for advertising the so-called news shows used him to boost ratings and therefore gave him free advertising. The media created Trump.

Edit to add:

On the other hand, the media coverage of Hillary has been negative since the beginning

It has become almost hilarious watching the Democrats play the butt-hurt meme of irresponsible negative media, as if the media's purpose should be to promote their tainted candidate, you'll have to go to PBS for that type of rubbish.

I have seen little positive reporting on Trump in any of the media but he seems to comprehend that the medium is the message and that any coverage, good, bad or indifferent gives him exposure which has driven his rise to the top in this race. Trump's attack and giving the finger to Fox News, the conservative media powerhouse, may be the most brilliant political move ever attempted and it worked, his numbers and wins keep rising.

Regarding butt-hurt, the only ones feeling butt-hurt are the ones who have given up hope, cause life is going on and people are taking action. If your not involving in anything and just typing criticisms from your chair, your butt probably does hurt. For those involved and working for a candidate, or doing activities to help others are in no pain

BTW

The candidates you say are tarnished will wipe the floor with the Donald in November (either Democratic Party candidate)

[....] Last month, Jared Kushner announced the Administration’s support for the bill in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, writing that the six million Americans in local and federal prisons are included among “the forgotten men and women” that Trump vowed to fight for during his Presidential campaign.. “Get a bill to my desk, and I will sign it,” Trump promised. The House passed the bill this week.

President Trump on Thursday canceled a planned summit next month with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, citing “tremendous anger and open hostility” from the rogue nation in a letter explaining his abrupt decision.

“I feel it is inappropriate, at this time, to have this long-planned meeting,” Trump said to Kim in a letter released by the White House on Thursday morning.

The summit had been planned for June 12 in Singapore.

In his letter, Trump held open the possibility that the two leaders could meet at a later date to discuss denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, which Trump has been pushing.

"President Trump’s unprecedented meeting on Monday with the FBI director and deputy attorney general regarding a case in which he is directly involved may turn out to be the defining moment of his presidency and for his party. Bob Bauer at the Lawfare blog writes:

North Korea is threatening to reconsider Kim Jong Un’s participation in a summit with President Trump next month, saying it is up to the United States to decide whether it wants to “meet us at a meeting room or encounter us at nuclear-to-nuclear showdown.”

Stacey Abrams just one the Democratic Gubernatorial race in Georgia by roughly 3:1. She could become the first black and first female Governor of Georgia. It looks like the Republican candidate will be chosen after a runoff election since no one reached 50% of the vote.

Evans argued that Democrats could win by appealing to moderate Republicans. Abrams argued that the party needs to focus on disaffected Democrats. Abrams won. Abrams even won Democrats in northern Georgia with small minority populations.

Kendrick Lamar brought on a white fan onstage to rap along with his song “m.A.A.D. City”. When the fan rapped the song as written, repeating the N-word three times, Lamar halted the performance. He told the fan that she could not use the word. She apologized. He gave her a second chance. She almost rapped the word again, the crowd was not having it. Lamar ushered the fan off stage and continued the performance.

The audience responded negatively to the white fan using the words on stage. She lost the crowd with the first use of the words. Some did point out that she was just rapping the words as written.